Consequences
by Dramafool
Summary: ah, if only i could write summaries... well, this is a sort of storything about the machine that Reed tests on himself, because i was appalled at the lack of follow up. so i wrote it myself. i may yet win an academy award.
1. Chapter 1

I look at him lying there, and the tears start up in my eyes. _Why?_ I think to a God who doesn't answer. _Why Reed? Why do you have to take him?_ I lean over his bed and touch his face, so still, so empty. His beautiful dark eyes are closed, and his breath is shallow. He must feel my touch, because he opens his eyes and looks at me. Smiling gently, he raises a trembling hand to brush tears from my face. I can see him struggling to speak, and I hold up a hand to silence him. Even so, he gasps out one word: "Susan". I smile even as tears fall from my eyes, and I say, "I love you, Reed." He nods, and his eyes close again, and he slips back into unconsciousness.

Settling back into my chair beside his bed, I pick up Reed's photo album, which I'd been looking through, and dash away tears with my hand. _It was that _damn_ experiment,_ I think. _Something got messed up when he tried that goddamn machine on himself. _The pictures begin to blur again, and I stifle a sob. The door swings open, and I turn to look who's standing there.

It's my brother, Johnny. I know for a fact that he is supposed to be out on a date now, so I have no idea why he's here. He shoots me a small smile, and walks over. "How is he?"

I look down. "Not too good."

I feel Johnny's comforting hand on my shoulder. "How are you?"

"Not too good at all."

"Ah." He stands there for a moment as silence fills the room. I stare at Reed's still face, wishing that I could find a cure, but knowing that it is beyond my reach. _If I were lying there, and Reed were well, he'd find a cure, _I think. Instead of voicing this to my brother, I say, "Aren't you supposed to be out?"

He gives me a grin. "Without Reed to forbid it, it's not really the same. I cancelled on Hannah– she didn't seem that crushed." I raise an eyebrow at him, and he gives me a long-suffering sigh. "I figured that I'm of a lot more use here, all right? You dragged it out of me."

I nod toward another chair. "Pull up a seat." He does, and we sit in silence for a while, staring at the bed and it's unconscious occupant. I pull out Reed's photo album again. I open it to a random page, and stare at a picture of Reed and me, while we were both students at MIT, before the accident in space, before our break-up, before all the pain that we both were going through right now. As I gaze on our happy faces, memory swamps me.

_It was Susan Storm's first day at MIT, and she was looking forward to it. Slamming the door of the cab behind her and looking up the steps, she felt a sense of foreboding, but an _exciting _sense of foreboding. Starting up the stairs, she gazed around at all the other students, some obviously having the same experience as she was. There was one man in particular who stood out. He looked like a young boy in a candy shop, looking around him with such glee that he wasn't watching where he was going and tripped on a step, sending all his books flying around him. Sue stifled a laugh and hurried over to help._

"_Are you alright?" she asked him. He glanced up from where he was kneeling, trying to collect scattered papers. A blush came over his cheeks and he grinned sheepishly. _

"_Yeah, just a little overwhelmed. First day, you know. It's a bit awe-inspiring."_

"_I know what you mean," Sue agreed, nodding fervently. She knelt beside him to pick up a textbook. "I'm Susan Storm," she said, holding out the hand that wasn't occupied with the textbook._

"_Reed Richards," he said, shaking her hand. His eyes caught hers and held them– for a long, breathless moment, they seemed to be searching her soul. Finally he smiled, and dropped her hand. Standing up, he brushed off the knees of his pants. "I hope I'll see you around, Susan Storm. I get the feeling that this isn't the only time that this is going to happen today."_

"_Yeah, me too," said Sue, watching as he turned and headed up the steps._

Loud footsteps shake me out of my flashback, and a mountain of rock appears at the door. "How's Reed," asks a voice that sounds like rocks rubbing against each other. Ben's trying in vain to be quiet– quiet's not something that he does well.

"Not that good," I say, closing the album. Ben's eyes close for a moment at my words, and then he opens them. Stomping across the room, he sits resolutely on the floor, as far away from my brother as he can get. Johnny doesn't miss this, and he gives Ben a mocking half-bow. Grumbling, Ben turns to look at Reed.

"This is all my fault," he mutters.

I'm shocked. "No, of course it isn't!"

"Yeah, it is," he says. "If I hadn't been so eager to get changed back, he wouldn't have tested it on himself!"

"Come on, Ben," Johnny says. "It was just Reed being Reed. He always tries these things. You've known him for longer than either of us, don't be stupid."

"Whatever," Ben mumbles. I sigh and pull out the album again.

"What are you looking at, Sue?" my brother asks.

"Just a photo album I found in my room," I say, holding it out to him. Johnny takes it and begins to look through it. Clambering to his feet, Ben comes over to look over his shoulder.

As they both reminisce, I sit down beside Reed on his bed. Taking his hand in mine, I murmur, "Come back to us, Reed. Please come back. We can't have three people in the Fantastic Four. We need you. I need you. Please. Come back."

I don't even know if he can hear me.


	2. Chapter 2

_Susan Storm and Reed Richards are walking along the dark and empty New York streets at 10 pm. Neither of them are particularly worried about criminals who might try to mug them (or worse). Several shady figures lurk in the shadows of dark alleyways, but none do more than lurk– all they have to do is see how Reed's arm is wrapped several times around Sue's waist, and how, whenever he leans over to whisper something in her ear, she giggles and goes slightly transparent. Attacking this pair would probably not be a good idea._

_As they approach the Baxter building, a streak of flame zooms up, and turns into Sue's brother, Johnny. He's wearing only his Fantastic Four suit and looks very pleased with himself. "Hey guys. How was the hot date?" he asks. Sue rolls his eyes, but she doesn't get a chance to reply because female voices cry, "Look, there he is!" Johnny turns to glance behind him and must see something that frightens him because he says, in a slightly panicked tone, "I gotta go. Catch you later!" He zooms off as Sue cries, "Johnny!" in a sort of half-hearted voice._

"_He really shouldn't be going off like that," says Reed, staring at the empty sky._

"_I know, but who's going to stop him?" asks Sue._

"_Good point." Reed stops, looking into Sue's eyes. Softly, he says, "You know, I always thought that the problem with New York was that you could never see the stars. But I was wrong. All I have to do is look into your eyes."_

_Sue is so shocked by this un-Reedlike thing to say that she goes completely invisible. Wriggling out of his arm, she laughs. "Come on, Reed. Catch me!"_

_He sighs in a slightly exasperated tone. "You never get tired of this, do you?"_

"_Nope," she runs into the building, expecting him to follow her. Waiting for a few minutes, with no Reed coming through the door, she peeks out again. No Reed._

_Opening the door and stepping onto the sidewalk, Sue almost stumbles on a prone form. At first, she figures that it's some drunk, or a homeless guy. But then she recognizes the suit jacket. Panicked, she kneels and turns him over, praying she won't see the familiar face._

I wake up, my face wet with tears and my heart pounding in my chest. Wincing at a crick in my neck, I turn in the chair that I've fallen asleep in to look at the man in the bed next to me. He's tossing and turning, drenched in sweat. I quickly get up and sit down on his bed, holding his had. I murmur, "It's okay, Reed, I'm here. It's Sue, I'm here."

He calms down, and his other hand comes to hold mine, stroking the gasket that I wear on my finger. "Sue?" he croaks.

"Yes, I'm here,"

"Was it the machine?" he asks, his eyes still closed.

"I think so," I reply.

"Oh," he sighs, and slips once more into unconsciousness.

I remain holding his hand and staring at his face. _Please get better, Reed. Please get better. _

A sound at the doorway like a strangled sob interrupts my futile prayers. I turn, and see Ben Grimm standing there, tears streaming down his rocky face. I conceal my surprise as I smile and say, "Hey, Ben. Want to come in?"

Mutely he shakes his head. Turning, he runs down the hall and down the stairs into the city.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: I realize I haven't done that traditional disclaimer thing for the past two chapters, and this is the last chapter, so you'll have to forgive me. Nothing in this story is mine, except for the words. In fact, I hardly own anything. Keep that in mind. It will make our lives oh-so-much easier.**

Rain pounds the windows, and I shift uncomfortably as the lights flicker. _Calm down, Sue_, I think to myself. _It's only a thunder-storm. There's no way that Victor– no, Dr. Doom– could come back after what we did to him._ Even so, I can almost _feel_ my nerves tightening, and every little creak of a board sets me more and more on edge. I haven't seen Ben in three days, but he called and told us that he was staying with Alicia. Johnny's off with some girl, and I'm here, alone, with an unconscious man. Shivering, I pick up my book, trying to tune out the empty, lonely, hopeless world around me.

Hours pass– I don't know how many, nor do I care to count. All I know is that I get through book after book, that Reed lies still on the bed, and that I keep jumping whenever anything makes the slightest sound. Finally I find myself dozing off. Glancing at my watch, I see that it's nearing three in the morning. I stand up and look around, yawning. I really don't want to spend another night in the chair– it's so uncomfortable. But there's nowhere else to sleep, and I don't want to leave Reed all alone in here. _Well,_ I think. _We're engaged. And he certainly won't think less of me if he wakes up._ So I crawl under the covers beside Reed and almost immediately fall asleep.

_Reed Richards has been working up the nerve to ask Sue Storm out for the past week. Finally, as they're discussing a problem from class and walking along the Hudson River, he decides that the time has come. He figures that this is the most nerve-wracking thing in the world, and the words rush out of his mouth._

"_SuewhatareyoudoingonSaturday?"_

_She blinks at him, unsure of what he just said. Then, as her mind begins to untangle the mass of letters and sounds, she smiles. "Nothing," she says. _

"_Do you want to go get dinner or a movie? With me? Together?" he stammers, breath catching in his throat as he awaits her answer. _

_She won't tell him until a couple of years later, but she really likes how that sounds. _Together_. Sue and Reed. "Sure," she says. His eyes widen in surprise and relief._

"_Great! That's... fantastic! I'll pick you up at 7, then?" he asks._

"_Yeah, fine! Wait– do you have my phone number?" she says._

"_Um..." he ponders this question. "Are you in the directory?" She shakes her head. "Then no," he continues. _

"_Oh, well, here," she says, ripping off a piece of paper from her notebook and scribbling down some numbers. He takes it from her, and their fingers brush. Surprised at the contact, Sue raises her eyes to meet his. They stay like this for almost a minute before someone's bag jostles Reed's shoulder, and he blinks._

"_See you then, I guess," he says, flustered. All she can do is nod and watch him walk down the steps towards the subway._

_Sue can't wait for Saturday evening, and she spends most of the afternoon getting ready. Her friends come and go, each helping her out with one little bit that she's forgotten, or left un-perfect. Finally she's finished, and she spends the half-hour before he comes pacing in her living room or trying to calm herself down enough to do some studying or reading. Neither help, and when the buzzer rings, she jumps about a foot. Coming down the stairs, careful not to twist her ankle in her high heels, her heart is pounding and her palms are sweating. More than anything she wishes that she could become invisible. But when she opens the door and sees Reed's astonished face, she knows that everything is going to be all right. She smiles at him, and he smiles back. Holding out an arm, he escorts her into a taxi, and they drive down the street. Together._

I wake up slowly, not wanting to let the dream go. It's such a nice memory, compared to some of the hellish ones that the months following contained. As I open my eyes to stare at the ceiling, I notice that someone's tucked me in more securely, and that my book has been carefully placed on the bedside table, instead of on the floor where I'd left it. I twist my head to look at Reed and see that he's turned towards me, his face buried in my shoulder. Looking down, I notice that his arm has found its way several times around my waist, and that his hand is holding mine.

As I stare into his face, Reed's eyes open and he smiles at me. "Good morning," he whispers. My eyes widen as I realize that I don't detect any hint of the weakness that's plagued him for the past month. He raises an eyebrow at me. "Did Johnny put anything in my drink, because I certainly can't remember how I got into this lovely position." All I can do is blink at him. Reed chuckles. "Not that I'm protesting, anything, mind you. It's just..." he winces. "I think that I will refrain from testing any inventions myself from now on."

I smile at him. "Good. If you did, I would have to take drastic measures. And no one wants that." Slowly I turn invisible, and he smiles.

"I'm warning you, Sue, I'm not in any shape to go chasing you around the room."

I snuggle up against him. "Oh, I'm not going anywhere, Reed. Not for a long time."

**Finished, fin, etcetera, etcetera. So, lovely lovely readers and reviewers. Did you like it? Don't be afraid to tell me what you thought! annoying nudge**


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